Rage 14/ July24, -1984

BUT MOST MUSEUM DIRECTORS DON'T KNOW IT

Art Fair's reputatior
the State Street Art Fair, people from as far away as
By ANNE SPONSELLER Israel have been trying to get in, though it is not easy.

I T'S THE MIDDLE of July, and around here
that means just one thing: The art fair is just around
the corner. It's going to shake up the city on its four-
day spree before hiberbating for another year.
While some people prepare to head out of town for the
weekend, others are willing to put up with the hassles
of parking, uncertain Michigan weather, and the
crowds.
In return, they enjoy bargain junting, people wat-
ching, and. . . art. Certainly, everyone in the city is,
somehow or another, affected by the event. But. how
far is its influence felt?
Actually, the Ann Arbor art fair has quite a
national reputation among artists and craftsmen in
the country. This year, they will be travelling from
all over the United States and Canada to show their
work.
According to Pat Kemeney-Macias, coordinator for

Kemeney-Macias believes that the size of the
crowd is the main attraction. "There's going to be
between three and four hundred thousand people here
over the four days. Some of the artists can come and
get commissions during that time that will keep them
through December," she explained.
As director of the State Street Fair, Kemeney-
Macias gets letters from people who didn't get in this
year saying "that was one of my big moneymaking
fairs." But she noted that this is true for only certain
crafts.
Scott Hartley, a full-time local painter who's been
to several fairs, thinks the Ann Arbor market is not
ideal for his art. He rated the fair a "six out of ten,"
saying "I do a whole lot better in some of the smaller
fairs," where more people are prepared to buy than
at this fair.
Anne Teichert, membership coordinator for the
Summer Arts Festival, attributes the Ann Arbor

i grows
fair's mass appeal to its prestige.
"The State Street Art Fair is known nationally as
the queen of fairs," Teichert said. And the fair as a
whole is "one of the top five in the country, maybe
even the top three." There is a five-year wait to get in
to the festival, which people do "without blinking an
eye."
But while many artists couldn't get by without the
art fair, most art museum directors throughout the
country have not heard of Ann Arbor's fair. Those who
had heard of it knew it only by name.
Most were also unaware of its outdoor setting and
the extent of community involvement.
Nancy Liddle, director of the New York State
Albany Art Gallery had "heard of it before," but
wondered why it only lasted four days, while
Albany's indoor fair lasts six weeks.
But reputations take time and at 25 the art fair is
still young.
Besides, Ann Arbor has made itself known in other
ways. Robert Meldonian, the director of the Las
Vegas Art Museum, said "you've got a good school
and a lot of money, but no, I have not heard of your
art fair."

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